Alphas of Summer: A collection of shifter romances

by Lia Davis

  He was still staring at the pictures without having said a word when the doctor closed the door. His attention was wholly engrossed in the first pictures of his daughter. When Anna’s movements finally caught his attention, he was horrified by his behavior. He hadn't noticed her struggling to sit as she tried to get dressed.

  “Oh, my Goddess. I’m so sorry, cher. Do you need help with anything? Do you want me to help you with your shoes?”

  Anna sighed, just when she thought she’d caught a break. “No, babe. I’ve got it.”

  The ride home was quiet. Anna relaxed with her eyes closed while Cade considered the ramifications of what he’d just seen. It had all become frighteningly real, and panic was setting in. They weren’t ready. They hadn’t even painted the nursery, much less gotten a crib. He was going to have to take the bull by the horns, or their daughter wasn’t going to have a place to sleep.

  Cade’s wolf rumbled its pleasure as he gazed at his sleeping mate before he gently woke her. “Cher, we’re home.”

  “Oh, wow. I only meant to rest my eyes.”

  “You needed a nap. I know you haven’t been sleeping well lately.”

  “I know. I had forgotten how difficult it is to get comfortable and sleep when I’m this big. I think I’ll lay down and try to sleep a little more.”

  “Good idea. I’ll take care of dinner so you can rest.”

  Cade waited until he was sure she was sleeping before he left the house. He had a mission and would need a few of the guys to make it happen. First stop, Simon’s house.

  “Hi, Cade, what’s up?” Rose asked as she opened the door.

  “Hi, Rose. I’m making a surprise for Anna. Is Simon here?”

  “Sure, he’s in the kitchen. What’s the surprise? Maybe I can help.”

  “I appreciate the offer, but this is a daddy and uncles kind of surprise.”

  “Okay, but you might want to get a woman’s opinion before you go around surprising a pregnant woman. Just sayin',” Rose laughed, shaking her head as she went back to reading her book.

  “Hey, Cade!”

  “Hi, Simon. Want to help put together the baby nursery for Anna? I want to take care of it for her as a surprise.”

  Simon glanced nervously toward the living room where Rose was reading. “Are you sure you want to do that without her knowing?”

  “Why does everyone keep asking me that? Yes, what part of surprise didn’t you understand?”

  “Hang on, now. Don’t get all bent out of shape. I’m just asking. What did you have in mind?”

  “For starters, painting. I don’t want her near the paint fumes.”

  Simon pressed his lips together and nodded. “I can understand that. Do you have the paint yet?”

  “No. But I know what color I need to get from the hardware store,” Cade said grinning ear to ear.

  “Really?” Simon stretched out the word and grinned along with his big brother.

  “Pink!”

  Simon’s mouth fell open in shock. Girl babies were rare in the shifter world.

  “What’s pink?” Rose called from the other room.

  “Nothing,” Cade quickly responded. If Rose got wind of what he had planned, she might spill the beans to Anna.

  Cade waved Simon closer so he could whisper. “I’ll get the paint and supplies. Could you get a couple other guys to help us tape and paint?”

  “Yeah, sure. What time do you want us to show up?”

  “Give me thirty minutes, and don’t knock or make noise. Anna is sleeping.”

  “Okay, meet you in the nursery.” Then Simon glanced toward the living room again. “Mum’s the word.”

  Cade lit out for the hardware store while Simon headed to Stefan’s. He knew there was no way Stefan would miss out on this.

  “Hey, bro. What’s happening?” Stefan asked as he munched potato chips.

  “You’re about to be an uncle,” Simon grinned.

  Stefan scowled back at him. “Yeah, I know. Are you feeling okay?”

  “But did you know you're going to be an uncle to a niece?”

  Stefan choked on his mouthful of chips. “No! Are you sure? Anna’s having a girl?”

  “Yep,” Simon grinned rocking on his heels. “Cade just told me and asked for help with a surprise. You want in?”

  “Hell, yeah. What’s the plan and who’s the surprise for?”

  “Cade wants to paint the nursery pink for Anna and wants our help painting and stuff.”

  “Oh, okay.” Stefan cocked an eyebrow and nodded. “I can do that. I happen to rock at painting.”

  “Since when?” Simon snorted.

  “Always, you Neanderthal. Some of us actually painted our own houses.

  “Whatever,” Simon snorted. “You painted the front door.”

  “Well, it’s more than you’ve ever done.”

  “If you can manage to fit your inflated head through the doorframe, I need to ask Thomas if he wants to help.”

  Thomas leaned over the deck banister to see who was at the front door. “Hey, what are you two up to?”

  Simon squinted up at Thomas as he shaded his eyes. “Cade wants to surprise your mom by painting the nursery. Want to help?”

  Thomas frowned when he saw Stefan standing next to Simon grinning like an idiot. “I don’t know. It depends on why Stefan looks like that.”

  “Pfff, he always looks like an idiot. Ignore him.”

  “Hey!” Stefan objected, thwacking Simon’s shoulder.

  “Why do I get the feeling this is a really bad idea?” Thomas asked through gritted teeth.

  “I have no idea,” Simon shrugged innocently. “We’re just surprising your mom with a freshly painted nursery, so she won’t try to do it herself and breathe in the fumes.”

  Thomas gave them a good, long look. “All right, I can help out, but we better not get into trouble. My mom’s really scary when she’s mad.”

  Cade crept into the house as quietly as possible. Anna had been up all night. Worrying over the ultrasound had compounded her insomnia, and she was finally getting some rest. If his luck held out, they could get the painting done before she woke up. Setting the paint cans on the newspaper he had spread over the carpeting, he looked at the closed window. He’d better crack all the windows, so the smell of paint didn’t wake her either.

  The quiet sound of a tiptoeing army let him know the guys had arrived. Keeping them quiet was going to be a challenge.

  “Hey, Cade,” Simon whispered.

  “Hi, guys. Thanks for coming. We don’t have a lot of time, so let's try to hurry. Simon, could you start taping the trim?”

  “Sure.” Simon dug the painter’s tape from the shopping bag.

  “Thomas, could you cut in the edges?”

  “Cool, my favorite part of painting.”

  “You’ve done this before?” Cade asked.

  “Sure, haven’t you?” Thomas asked over his shoulder as he grabbed his supplies. Suddenly, he straightened and spun around. “Oh, shit! Please tell me you know what you’re doing.”

  “Well...the guy at the hardware store told me what to do and made sure I had all the brushes and stuff. We’ll be fine.”

  “Shit,” Thomas hung his head in defeat. “We’re going to die.”

  “Oh, come on. Quit being dramatic and get painting.” Cade scowled.

  “Okay, but when she goes atomic, rabid wolf on your ass, I’m laying all the blame at your feet.”

  That thought had Cade hesitating for a moment before he shook his head.

  No, this is a good idea, he thought, as he convinced himself to follow through with his plan.

  Shaking it off, he turned to Stefan. “Take one of these pans and fill the end with paint and start rolling it on. I’ll work on this wall with another roller. The hardware guy said paint at angles, so we’ll do that.”

  Stefan rolled a few random stripes on the wall before he pulled the roller away and stepped back to eye the paint. Frowning, he looked at Cade. “This loo
ks really bright. Are you sure this is the right color? It looks – neon.”

  “The sample was really pretty. Just keep painting and allow it to dry. It will look different than when it’s wet.”

  Stefan eyed the wall again. “All right, if you’re sure.”

  He was still looking at Cade’s wall as he walked backward toward his own. A squeak broke from his throat as he stepped on the slippery lid of the open paint can. Catching air, his feet flew from under him as he went down hard.

  In his panic to stop his fall, he jerked the newspaper the open can was on. Like a teeter-totter, as Stefan went down, the can went up. The paint sailed in every direction. Nothing escaped the airborne, psychedelic pink destruction.

  The sound of men shouting jerked Anna from a sound sleep. Almost falling out of bed, she stumbled to the bedroom door.

  What the hell was that?

  Then she heard them again. Why were Stefan and Thomas in the house? Was that Simon?

  “Cade? What’s going on?” Anna asked as she stepped from the hallway into the nursery. “NO!”

  The men froze, brushes and rollers stopping in mid throw. Once the initial splash of paint hit everyone, a paint war ensued. Paint splatter was everywhere – the walls, window, carpeting, even the ceiling were covered with neon pink.

  “What are you doing!” Anna screeched.

  Thomas pointed at Cade as Simon and Stefan stammered.

  “Dammit,” Cade mumbled as his wolf glared at him disapprovingly. Then he turned a sad face toward the love of his life. “I wanted to surprise you with a freshly painted nursery. As you can see, it didn’t go well.” Then he quickly added, “Don’t worry babe. I’ll get this cleaned up.”

  “You bet your sweet ass you will,” Anna growled as she stomped to the kitchen. Her head was suddenly pounding like a marching band had taken up residence in her skull.

  Cade slipped up behind her and wrapped his arms around her. “I really am sorry, mon amour. I was trying to help by painting the nursery pink.” He sighed heavily. “I wanted it to be perfect for you and our baby.”

  “I know you meant well, babe. It was just a shock to see neon pink covering everything.” Then she giggled. “The look on your faces, when I walked in, was priceless.”

  He chuckled along with her. “Stefan slipped on the lid and next thing I knew it was like a food fight but with paint. I tried to stop those idiots, but you know what they’re like.”

  “I’ll have to call a professional painter and get it fixed,” Anna said, her voice weak and sounding exhausted. “I guess I’ll need to order carpet, too.”

  Chapter 2

  Cade grabbed a cup of coffee and the phone. He needed caffeine and a professional painter. Preferably today. Once he had the painting fiasco fixed, he needed to think of a way to make it up to Anna.

  By the time he was done with his second cup, he’d gotten the number for Thomas’s painter who had done his entire house and the man was on his way. He made sure the contractor had a pretty pastel pink and not the crap he’d gotten yesterday. Neon pink? What had he been thinking anyway?

  Now he needed flooring. “Anna, would you like carpet in the bedroom, or would you rather change it to wood flooring?” Cade called from the kitchen.

  “Carpet. Babies fall down a lot when they start walking,” she called back from the laundry room.

  “I should have thought of that,” he growled. So far, he wasn’t doing very well as a father. He needed to step up his game and get a handle on this.

  The painter was on his way, and the carpet guy was scheduled to measure the room later in the morning. Luckily, they still carried the same carpeting he and the guys just destroyed. It was going to be easy enough to lay the new carpet down once the paint dried.

  Anna joined him in the kitchen, sighing in relief as she sat at the table.

  “Let me get you some decaf,” Cade offered as he brushed his lips across her forehead. “Would you like some oatmeal? Or how about eggs for breakfast today?”

  “Instant oatmeal sounds great. Thanks, babe, I’m starving, but my feet are killing me.”

  “You just sit right there, and I’ll take care of you.” He was waiting for the microwave to finish her oatmeal when he got an idea. “When was the last time you and the ladies went to the spa?”

  Anna took a sip of her coffee. “I’m not sure, a while ago.”

  “I think you should take the entire day tomorrow and pamper yourself. Call up Rose, El, and Mom and make a party of it.”

  Anna considered his suggestion for a minute. “You know, I think I will. Thanks for the idea, sweetheart. And thanks for taking care of the nursery. Even though it didn’t work out, painting it yourself was a really sweet idea.”

  Cade kissed her knuckles. “I would do anything for you, but maybe next time I try to be a manly man, I’ll do a better job of it,” he said chuckling.

  “Believe me, you’re a manly man in bed every night,” Anna said, her eyes heating over the rim of her cup.

  “You had better behave, or I’ll carry you back to bed, workmen in the house be damned.”

  “Promises, promises,” she teased.

  Anna had plans with Emma, which was just fine with him. He didn’t want her around the new paint or new carpet fumes. By nine that morning she was out the door, and the painting contractor, Nick, had arrived.

  “Did a disco dancer blow up in here?” Nick asked as he turned in the center of the room to get the full effect.

  Cade scowled irritably at the mess. “No. My brothers and stepson did.”

  Nick gave him an odd look but didn’t ask for clarification. “Give me a few minutes to prep the room and paint a test patch for your approval.”

  “All right. Do you think the paint will come off the woodwork, or do I need to have that stripped and re-stained?”

  “I’ll try to clean it off and if there is a problem I’ll let you know. Since you used a latex paint, it should come off fairly easily.”

  Cade nodded. He liked that answer. At least one thing was going right. “I’ll be in my office, down the hall. Yell when you need me.”

  A little over an hour later, the room was primed, and the contractor needed approval to proceed.

  “Cade? I have the test patch ready,” Nick yelled.

  “On my way,” Cade shouted back.

  He took one looked at the test color and breathed a sigh of relief. It was perfect, soft and yet just enough color without being garish. Anna was going to love it, and he would be out of the doghouse.

  “You just saved my hide, Nick. Thank you,” Cade smiled approvingly. “The color is exactly what I wanted.”

  Cade was feeling much better about the baby’s room. With the stress from the paint disaster under control, he could concentrate on the file spread across the desk. Lucas had emailed ideas for the ranch in Texas and wanted him to look them over and advise him on how to move forward. The new project of a cattle - dude ranch combination had his creative juices flowing like nothing had in quite a while.

  Anna waddled across the yard to the main house. She had a morning tea date with her mother-in-law, Emma, to discuss a baby shower and family heirlooms. Knowing a shifter lived to be fourteen hundred years, heirlooms could be from almost any century.

  By the time she cleared the top step on the front porch, Emma had the door open with a welcoming smile.

  “How the heck do you do that? Were you watching for me?” Anna asked as she hugged Emma.

  “I have my secrets, and as queen, I have an extra power or two, but we can talk about that another day.” She grinned and then began to rub her hands together. “Today is all about my grandchild and your baby shower.”

  “One of these days I’m going to make you tell me all your deep, dark secrets. You know that, right?”

  “Of that, I have no doubt. But the time and place to pass on the secrets of the queen’s powers is neither today nor is it in my living room. So, what flavor would the baby like today?”

 
; “Rooibos would be wonderful.”

  “My granddaughter has good taste.” Emma grinned as she steeped the tea. “Let’s talk about the shower first.”

  “All right.”

  “I was thinking,” Emma said as she poured the tea, “since this is our first grandchild and the future queen of the shifters, I would love to involve the entire family in the shower.”

  Anna frowned. “Entire family?”

  “Yes, a men’s and women’s shower,” Emma stated like it was a normal thing.

  “How, exactly, would that work?”

  “The women buy all the pretty little outfits and such that every mother loves while the men buy the new father things he may need for the baby.”

  Anna still looked leery. “Okay, I’ve never been to a baby shower with men before, but if that’s what you want to do, I’m game.”

  Emma clapped her hands happily. “I’ll address the invitations and have Rose help organize the event. Leave everything to me.”

  One look at her mother-in-law’s gleeful expression, and she began to panic. “This is just immediate family right?”

  “Absolutely, just family. Now, before you start buying baby stuff, I have some things I saved from when the boys were little.”

  “I was surprised when you said you had heirlooms. I’ve never seen any baby items in the house. Where have you been hiding them?”

  “There’s a storage building on the island with the cabin. Isaac is fetching the baby things for me, and we’ll give them to you at the shower. Don’t buy anything for the nursery until after the shower. I have a feeling you are going to receive everything you need as gifts.”

  Nick was rhythmically rolling the first coat of pink on the third wall when the carpet contractor arrived.

  “Good morning, Mr. Le Beau. My name is Jeff,” the contractor said, offering his hand.

  “Good morning, Jeff, and please call me Cade.”

  “All right, Cade. Where’s my patient? I was told this was an emergency.”

  “Right down here.” Cade gestured and led the way to the nursery.

  The walls were in much better shape than they had been, but the carpet still bore the evidence of yesterday’s paint war.